TIDMBOOM
RNS Number : 5743Z
Audioboom Group PLC
18 December 2017
18 December 2017
AudioBoom Group plc
("Audioboom" or the "Company")
Year-end update
Audioboom (AIM: BOOM), the leading spoken-word audio on-demand
platform, is pleased to provide an update on its KPIs and trading
for the year ended 30 November 2017.
KPIs
2017 has been a transformational year for the Company, which has
seen it move from a free-to-use product to a subscription and
advertising supported platform. This fundamental change has allowed
the Company to focus on high performing content and reduce the
number of smaller, uneconomical podcasts.
-- Unique file requests ("UFRs"): Total 2017 UFRs were 696
million, compared to 430 million in 2016, an increase of over
60%
-- Monthly unique users: 89.1 million as at 30 November 2017,
compared to 58.6 million as at 30 November 2016, an increase of
over 50%
-- Available advertising impressions: Audioboom created a total
of 2,032 million advertising impressions in the year, up from 242
million in 2016, an increase of 740% year-on-year
-- Content channels: Audioboom hosted 12,426 content channels as
at 30 November 2017, an increase of over 30% in the year (30
November 2016: 9,527). This is despite the introduction of the
subscription service and the reduction in the number of less
popular podcasts on the platform
KPI FY2016 FY2017 % +/-
----------------------- ------ ------ -----
Monthly unique
users
(Total for final
month of period) 59m 89m +>50%
----------------------- ------ ------ -----
Available advertising
impressions
(Cumulative for
period) 242m 2,032m +740%
----------------------- ------ ------ -----
Unique file requests
("UFRs")
(Cumulative for
period) 430m 696m +>60%
----------------------- ------ ------ -----
Content channels
(Total at end of
period) 9,527 12,426 +>30%
----------------------- ------ ------ -----
Content partners
In line with the Company's dedicated focus on working with the
most prominent podcasts, it is pleased to report numerous major
wins in 2017 including: The Minds of Madness (1 million listens per
month ("lpm")); And That's Why We Drink (1 million lpm); The Fall
Line (800k lpm); The 85 South Show (900k lpm); Rebel Force Radio
(50k lpm); The Weekly Planet, an Australian based podcast with a
huge audience in the USA (2 million lpm); Estee Lalonde (1 million
lpm); Totally Football League (400k lpm); and the return of Hip Hop
Saved My Life with Romesh Ranganathan (300k lpm).
Audioboom Originals
In line with previous announcements, Audioboom successfully
launched the AudioBoom Originals Network in 2017. This initiative
is central to the Audioboom business model, creating original
intellectual property and helping to grow our gross margins.
Audioboom studios produced 10 "owned and operated" shows this
year from our New York and London studios, including political talk
show The 45(th) ; sci-fi-fi comedy Mission to Zyxx; and the
official US Open Tennis podcast. AudioBoom Originals are creating
more than two million available 'in-read' advertising impressions
per month, and the network was responsible for 5% of Audioboom's
revenue in 2017, despite only being 'live' for six months of the
year.
In 2018, we expect the AudioBoom Originals Network will grow
significantly, making a material contribution to the Company's
forecast revenue. Fifteen new podcasts are due to be launched in
2018, beginning with a slate of four shows in January:
-- MAFIA - a crime documentary profiling the most notorious mob
figures in America including Donnie Brasco and Charles 'Lucky'
Luciano
-- Night Call - a pop culture podcast from hosts Molly Lambert,
Tess Lynch and Emily Yoshida, who previously hosted the successful
Girls In Hoodies show on ESPN's Grantland Podcast Network
-- Empty Frame - covers the greatest unsolved art heist of all
time - the $500 million theft of works by Rembrandt, Vermeer and
Degas from a Boston museum
-- Heartstrings - hosted by Rob Hill Sr., an entrepreneur,
self-help guru, author and New York Times columnist
Other notable shows in the pipeline include:
-- The Psychology Behind... - hosted by leading psychologist Dr. Linda Papadopoulos
-- Sue Perkins meets... - an interview style podcast series hosted by Sue Perkins
Audioboom will also further develop its creative services arm -
AudioBoom Studios - in the US, UK, India and Australia. AudioBoom
Studios will develop and produce content for premium platforms such
as Spotify, podcast networks and brands, and will work as the
production partner of CastBox, the Beijing and San Francisco based
podcast platform that recently raised US$16 million. In India we
are creating productions for Book My Show, India's equivalent of
Ticketmaster.
Financial update and outlook
Revenues for the 12 months to 30 November 2017 are expected to
exceed GBP4.8 million, an increase of more than 250% compared to
last year (30 Nov 2016: GBP1.3 million). Certain revenues which
were expected to fall into Q4 2016/17 will now be reflected in Q1
2017/18 due to the precise timing of campaigns and bookings, with
advanced bookings for Q1 2017/18 being ahead of management's
expectations.
The Company has continued to take steps to control overheads
resulting in below budget operating costs for the period. As a
result, the Company's overall trading for the year, as measured by
underlying EBITDA, is expected to be GBP4.5 million loss (2016:
GBP4.6 million loss). This figure includes certain one-off
transactional and legal costs, which totalled over GBP0.2 million.
If these costs are excluded, the adjusted EBITDA for the year would
be further improved to a GBP4.3 million loss.
The year-end cash balance was c. GBP0.7 million (2016: GBP0.7
million), with additional available facilities of GBP0.75
million.
The Board has made good progress in respect of the appointment
of a new Chief Financial Officer and will update the market at the
appropriate time.
The Board's expectations are for further substantial growth in
revenues and much improved EBITDA performance during the coming
year.
Rob Proctor, CEO of AudioBoom, commented: "The profile of
podcasts and on-demand audio has exploded in 2017. Audiences and
digital advertising budgets continue to flock to the medium; a
tremendous validation of our business model.
This year has been a pivotal one for Audioboom. We focused on
the best performing global podcasts, saw revenues increase more
than 250%, created our own original content studio - increasing
margins - and re-focused and streamlined overheads. This refined
business model is now ready to benefit from the tremendous
increases in audience and content we anticipate in 2018. Audioboom
is now in the strongest possible position to maximise the
foundations we have built over the last three years.
We continue to shape the industry, in particular with the
transparency of our data, which has been recognised by the Internet
Advertising Bureau, who recently invited us to join their advisory
panel.
Podcasting's continued growth, our platform, model and
relationships with the likes of Spotify, Apple, Google, Sony and
Deezer mean 2018 should be a very exciting year for Audioboom and
its shareholders."
Audioboom Group plc
Rob Proctor, Chief Executive Tel: +44(0)20 7403
Officer 6688
Allenby Capital Limited (Nominated Tel: +44(0)20 3328
adviser and broker) 5656
David Hart / Alex Brearley
/ Asha Chotai
Walbrook PR Limited (PR & Tel: +44(0)20 7933
IR Advisers) 8780
Paul Cornelius / Sam Allen or audioboom@walbrookpr.com
About audioBoom
AudioBoom is a global podcasting platform that consolidates the
business of on-demand audio, making content accessible,
wide-reaching and profitable for podcasters, advertisers and
brands. AudioBoom operates internationally, with operations across
North America, Europe, Asia, Australia and Latin America, and
addresses the issue of disparate podcast services by putting all of
the pieces of the puzzle together under one umbrella, creating a
user-friendly, economical experience.
AudioBoom hosts over 12,000 content channels, with key content
partners including Associated Press (US), "Athletico Mince" (UK),
The BBC (UK), Cumulus Media (US) , Edith Bowman (UK), "The Heart of
It with Estée Lalonde" (UK), India Today (India), "News Roast"
(UK), "No Such Thing As A Fish" (UK), Red FM (India), "The Totally
Football Show" (UK), "Untold: The Daniel Morgan Murder" (UK),
"Undisclosed" (US) and Westwood One (US).
Original content produced by AudioBoom includes "The 45th" (US),
"I Almost Knew That" (India), "Corinne Bailey Rae: The Heart Speaks
in Whispers" (UK), "Ctrl Alt Win Podcast" (India), "Deliberations"
(US), "InBox (US), "It's Happening with Snooki & Joey" (US),
"Mission To Zyxx" (US), "The Russell Brand Podcast" (UK) and "Very
Bad Words" (US).
The platform receives over 60 million listens per month and
allows partners to share their content via Apple Podcasts,
BookMyShow, Deezer, Google Play, iHeartRadio, Saavn, Spotify,
Stitcher, Facebook and Twitter as well as their own websites and
mobile apps.
For more information for podcasters, advertisers and listeners,
visit audioboom.com.
This information is provided by RNS
The company news service from the London Stock Exchange
END
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